WASHINGTON, DC – The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), representing the full spectrum of U.S. textiles from fiber through finished sewn products, held its officer elections for fiscal year 2020 today.

In addition to the appointment of a new chairman and vice chairman, NCTO elected chairs for each of its four councils. NCTO is comprised of four councils to ensure a broad representation of the industry supply chain. Each council has an allotted number of members who are elected to the association’s Board of Directors, in addition to the Executive Committee.

“I am pleased to announce our new officers, council chairs, and board and executive committee members for NCTO’s 2020 fiscal year,” said NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas. “David Roberts (CEO of Cap Yarns) has been elected our new chairman and succeeds Leib Oehmig (CEO of Glen Raven Inc.), who did an outstanding job serving in the role for more than a year.”

“This is a critical juncture for our industry as we continue to navigate through an uncertain business environment this year. I could not be prouder of our industry, which has stepped up and retooled to produce critical personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers battling the COVID-19 pandemic. With the support of our newly elected officers, NCTO will continue to work on behalf of its members to shape policies that will help our industry persevere and thrive. Through a dedicated association staff and a committed group of industry leaders, we will ensure that together we continue to have a seat at the table in Washington.”

Elected as NCTO Chairman and Vice Chairman for 2020 are:

• Chairman – David Roberts, CEO of Cap Yarns, Inc.
  • Mr. Roberts is CEO of Cap Yarns, Inc., based in Clover, South Carolina.  Cap Yarns is a specialty yarn manufacturer and a leader in developing unique yarns for the knitting and weaving industry.

• Vice Chairman – David Poston, President of Palmetto Synthetics LLC
  • Mr. Poston is President of Palmetto Synthetics, based in Kingstree, South Carolina. Palmetto Synthetics is a leading specialty synthetic fiber producer that has provided specialty thermoplastic fibers to companies across the globe.

Elected to the NCTO Board of Directors during the various Council meetings were the following:

Fiber Council – Lowell Bivens of PHP Fibers; John Freeman of Nan Ya Plastics America; Chuck Hall of William Barnet & Son; Rich Lemerise of The LYCRA Company; Alejandro Sanchez of DAK Americas; and Chip Stein of Stein Fibers

Yarn Council – Jim Booterbaugh of National Spinning Co.; Tom Caudle of Unifi; Charles Heilig of Parkdale Mills; Peter Iliopoulos of Gildan; Marty Moran of Buhler Quality Yarns Corporation; and Allen Smith of American & Efird

Fabric and Home Furnishings Council – Norman Chapman of Inman Mills; Kathie Leonard of Auburn Manufacturing; Chad McAllister of Milliken & Company; Leib Oehmig of Glen Raven, Inc.; Dirk Pieper of Sage Automotive Interiors; and Mike Shelton of Valdese Weavers

Industry Support Council – Cyril Guerin of Picanol; Ian Mills of Fi-Tech; and Gary Romanstine of Marzoli

Elected by their respective Councils to serve on the Executive Committee were:

Lowell Bivens of PHP Fibers; John Freeman of Nan Ya; Tom Caudle of Unifi; Peter Iliopoulos of Gildan; Norman Chapman of Inman Mills; Leib Oehmig of Glen Raven Inc.; and Ian Mills of Fi-Tech

Elected to chair the Councils:

Fiber Council: David Poston of Palmetto Synthetics

Yarn Council: Marty Moran of Buhler Quality Yarns Corporation 

Fabric and Home Furnishings Council: Leib Oehmig of Glen Raven, Inc.

Industry Support Council: Ian Mills of Fi-Tech

NCTO is a Washington, DC-based trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers.

• U.S. employment in the textile supply chain was 585,240 in 2019.
• The value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel was $75.8 billion in 2019.
• U.S. exports of fiber, textiles and apparel were $29.1 billion in 2019.
• Capital expenditures for textile and apparel production totaled $2.5 billion in 2018, the last year for which data is available.

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CONTACT: Kristi Ellis

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www.ncto.org

WASHINGTON, DC– National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) President and CEO Kim Glas issued a statement today, urging the government to institute Buy American policy changes to help bolster U.S. manufacturers producing personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers battling the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If the government is sincere about reconstituting a U.S. production chain for medical personal protective equipment (PPE) to resolve the drastic shortages we are experiencing during the current pandemic, it is going to have to make key policy changes to help incentivize domestic production. A strong Buy American mandate for these vital healthcare materials needs to be instituted for all federal agencies, coupled with other reasonable production incentives, to help ensure a strong U.S.  manufacturing base for these essential products.

Our government already has an existing example of such a mandate that serves as an excellent model. The U.S. Department of Defense operates under a fiber-to-finished product Buy American rule for military textiles. This rule ensures that the vital textile materials our U.S. warfighters depend upon, come from a secure domestic production chain that cannot be severed during a military emergency by offshore entities.

There is a bipartisan call for action as members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have begun to acknowledge the need for these types of reasonable and essential policy changes.

Expanding domestic purchase requirements through Executive Order and other legislative initiatives will ensure that PPE production through U.S. supply chains that have been created overnight don’t evaporate as soon as this crisis is over.

In the midst of the crisis, our failure to confront this challenge will allow for a repeat of the sins of the past that allowed sourcing agents to offshore the entire production of medical PPE in search of lucrative profits. While chasing the lowest cost import may have seemed cost effective at the time, these past few months have demonstrated that we paid a deadly price through this approach by jeopardizing the very lives of frontline medical personnel that are fighting the pandemic.  

This is a national security issue. It’s also a vital healthcare issue and it is decision time for U.S. policymakers. If our country is to be prepared for future deadly pandemics such as the one it is now facing, reasonable policy changes need to be implemented to ensure that we strengthen our domestic supply chain to address America’s security, safety and healthcare requirements.

NCTO is a Washington, DC-based trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers. 

• U.S. employment in the textile supply chain was 585,240 in 2019. 
• The value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel was $75.8 billion in 2019. 
• U.S. exports of fiber, textiles and apparel were $29.1 billion in 2019. 
• Capital expenditures for textile and apparel production totaled $2.5 billion in 2018, the last year for which data is available.

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CONTACT: Kristi Ellis

(202) 684-3091

www.ncto.org

The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), representing the full spectrum U.S. textiles from fiber through finished sewn products, issued a statement today welcoming the Trump administration’s proposals on an economic stimulus package to gird the economy against the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, but the organization urged officials to reject any attempts by importers to remove China 301 tariffs on finished products as part of any relief package.

“The president has outlined the need for a broad economic stimulus package that would include various tax incentives to help impacted industries and workers. We support the administration’s efforts to bolster the economy as a response to the coronavirus outbreak, while opposing add-ons to any stimulus package designed to exploit the crisis,” said NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas.

“Any push by importers and retailers to take advantage of the situation and press for removing China 301 tariffs on finished consumer goods—a penalty imposed by the administration in a separate investigation of China’s illegal intellectual property (IP) abuses—should be rejected immediately,” she said. “Tariff breaks on finished products will only pad the pockets of retailers that have long benefitted from China’s trade abuses, and ultimately will not be passed on to the consumer,” Glas said.

“Granting importers a tariff break would essentially let China off the hook for systemic IP violations that have displaced U.S. workers and undermined U.S. leverage in negotiating a phase two agreement,” Glas continued.

As part of a Phase One deal with China, the administration reduced duties on finished apparel and textile products implemented on Sept.1 from 15 percent to 7.5 percent.

“NCTO has strongly supported applying tariffs on finished products as a key negotiating leverage but opposes keeping tariffs in place on certain inputs that are not made in the U.S. such as select dyes, chemicals and textile machinery. NCTO has long-argued tariffs on these inputs hurt domestic competitiveness for U.S. textile manufacturers,” Glas said.

Finished apparel, home furnishings and other made-up textile goods equate to 93.5 percent of U.S. imports from China in the sector; while fiber, yarn, and fabric imports from China only represent 6.5 percent, according to government data.

NCTO is a Washington, DC-based trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers. 

• U.S. employment in the textile supply chain was 594,147 in 2018. 
• The value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel was $76.8 billion in 2018. 
• U.S. exports of fiber, textiles and apparel were $30.1 billion in 2018. 
• Capital expenditures for textile and apparel production totaled $2.0 billion in 2017, the last year for which data is available.

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CONTACT: Kristi Ellis

(202) 684-3091

www.ncto.org

National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) President and CEO Kim Glas issued the following statement today in response to the Congressional-Executive Commission on China’s staff report on the forced labor of Uyghurs and other minorities in China to produce consumer products for global companies.

We share the concerns of the bipartisan China commission regarding forced labor in China that is used to produce goods for global companies. We agree with the findings and the commission’s recommendations to the administration and Congress to take action against the systemic abuse of forced labor.

The plight of the Uyghurs and minority groups in China deserves greater attention. It is another example of how the Chinese have utilized illegal and oftentimes abhorrent practices to gain an advantage in the marketplace.

As the commission’s report details, Chinese apparel exporters have clearly profited from the virtual enslavement of this minority population, and we call for continued scrutiny and the end to this exploitation of a repressed people. The commission has served a fair warning to U.S. businesses and consumers to not be complicit in these forced labor practices.

NCTO is a Washington, DC-based trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers. 

• U.S. employment in the textile supply chain was 594,147 in 2018. 
• The value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel was $76.8 billion in 2018. 
• U.S. exports of fiber, textiles and apparel were $30.1 billion in 2018. 
• Capital expenditures for textile and apparel production totaled $2.0 billion in 2017, the last year for which data is available.

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CONTACT: Kristi Ellis

(202) 684-3091

www.ncto.org